Contacted to respond to Route 30 in the area of Kinzers Pa for a loaded tractor trailer that was stuck. The dispatcher was advising that the driver reported to him that he was off the side of the roadway in the snow and that the windshield was cracked, however he did not hit anything and he believed the truck was driveable.

Based upon the information we were given, we immediately dispatched a recovery supervisor and one of our heavy duty sliding rotator recovery units to the scene.

Upon arrival, the unit was found to be located between Brackbill Road and Hoover Road. It was found that the unit had been travelling westbound on Route 30 when the driver failed to properly navigate a turn in the road. The loaded unit left the right side of the roadway, struck a utility pole, went down over the embankment and then struck a dirt mound that is in place to protect the campground located along Route 30. The tractor had major damage. The front bumper and hood were damaged, the cab, sleeper, and windshield was damaged, the front drive axle was damaged. The trailer suffered damage to the reefer unit along with the bottom rail on both sides, and the fairing underneath the trailer. The wires were down on the road and the pole was hanging out in the westbound travel lane.

Our supervisor immediately contacted Lancaster County Wide Communications and requested that they contact PP&L regarding the downed pole. The supervisor also requested that we have Null's Recovery & Site Restoration dispatched to the scene to set-up traffic control through the scene. Additionally, the Fire Department was called to the scene.

The Pennsylvania State Police arrived along with the Kinzers Fire Company, our personnel worked with the other agencies onscene to establish a traffic control plan. It was determined that for the time being, the westbound lane would be shifted into the center turn lane.

Null's Recovery & Site Restoration arrived and setup warning signs at each end of the accident scene and equipment to establish a safe work zone for our personnel.

It was determined that the unit would have to be winched one entire length of the utility pole span so that it could be recovered back up the embankment without becoming entangled in the electric and communications lines. The unit would need to be winched approximately 350' and be brought back up a steep embankment onto the roadway. The snow was approximately 12" with a layer of ice on top. There was concerns of the snow building up under the unit and damaging the fuel lines, oil pan, and fuel tanks. There was a 24-36" high wall of hard packed snow on the edge of the roadway from the snow plowing operations. It was determined to avoid causing any environmental issues and any further damages to the unit, that the snow would need to be cleared from the recovery path.

The recovery supervisor requested that a second heavy duty sliding rotator recovery unit, a truck tractor to repower the trailer, along with Null's Recovery & Site Restoration's mini excavator be dispatched to the scene.

Two of our portable light towers were set-up to provide a safe work area for the personnel working onscene.

Upon arrival of the mini excavator it was immediately put to work clearing the snow from in front of the unit and up the hillside for the recovery of the unit.

Traffic flow was reduced to one lane.

The two heavy duty sliding rotator recovery units were set-up on the roadway. They were set-up on work platforms. Both rotators rotated their booms counter clockwise in line with the unit. One of the rotators was rigged to the rear of the trailer in order to hold the trailer upright as it was winched back towards the roadway. The second rotator was hooked to the front of the trailer and the tractor in order to steer the unit back towards the roadway.

Once the excavator was done clearing the snow from the recovery path, the rotators' winch lines were connected to the rigging that had been put in place earlier. The winch lines were tensioned and all rigging check. The unit was winched approximately 175' to the point that it was clear of the utility pole and lines and to a point that we could begin bringing the unit up the steep embankment.

The rotators were moved, one at a time and re-rigged for the ascent up the embankment. While one was being moved, the other held the unit upright.

With both rotators repositioned and the rigging checked, the unit was winched the remainder of the way to the roadway. The rotator operators had to work together very closely to ensure that the unit was kept upright and safely brought back onto the roadway without causing any further damages. Once the unit was on the roadway, the rigging was removed and loaded for transport.

NR&SR worked to pick up the truck parts from the roadway, the embankment, and the dirt mound that the truck struck.

The unit was moved from the roadway to a nearby parking lot. The unit was then separated. One of the rotators hooked to the back of the tractor. The cab and sleeper walls, side fairing, front bumper, windshield, and hood were secured. Both drive axles were chained up, the steering was secured, wireless towlights and secondary attachments were installed.

Our truck tractor hooked to the trailer. The reefer panels were secured on the trailer.

The traffic control equipment was picked up from the scene.

NR&SR transported the truck parts back to our facility. Our equipment cleared the scene. The truck and trailer were towed to Null's of Cochranville where they were placed in our secure storage yard.

Once back at our facility, the rigging that was utilized on the recovery was cleaned, inspected, and returned to its respective location. Our equipment was made ready for the next call.

A HUGE THANK YOU TO THE KINZER FIRE COMPANY FOR THEIR HELP ONSCENE WITH SCENE SAFETY AND TRAFFIC CONTROL! AS ALWAYS IT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!